Are you part of the NICU club? Do you have a child who is still struggling with the effects of being born too soon from preeclampsia? Share your concerns and stories here among parents who have been there.

My daughter was supposed to come home today but had three brady when feeding. Seems they have her on 55ml minimum feed on her formula but can have as much as she wants on 3 hour feedings. So at 9am she had 77ml, really 9:30 the nurse told me, then again at 12:30 she had 77ml. I had to leave because of shift change only to find out that the nurse fed her at 3:15, not a full three hours, and that after she took 50ml, she had three brady but HAD to drink 55ml. Are you kidding? She ate above and beyond the first two feedings of the day and when she is short a bit on one, really you try to FORCE her to eat and when she has a brady you say wow hate that happened she needs to stay a few more days so we can see why she is having brady again (none in over 7 days). Come on, really??? I had to leave not to go off on the nurse and the doctor. They had sent home all her stuff and because they try to overfeed her now she can't come home. I'm sorry, just tired. Been 67 days in NICU and honestly, its time to say goodbye, especially if THEY are the ones saying everything is fine! Grrrrrr.......

Can you talk to a patient advocate at the hospital, or the doctors boss? Was it the neonatologist who said this? That doesn't make any sense to me either? If she's overeaten the previous feedings then maybe she's just not that hungry. And I'd have a brady to if someone was force feeding me. I probably would have gone off on them. So how much longer must she stay?

Now they are saying Tuesday but today I am going to find someone to talk to because this is getting ridiculous. I am going to just let them know Tuesday is it for me. Why do I have to be the one that says "hey you are overfeeding her, and the Dr. and nurse can't figure that out? Really??? Last night she made her minimums of 55ml, and they switched from a standard nipple back to a slow flow. Which I had told them before makes more sense. They keep telling me when you get home you can figure out your own style, but heck I have to get her home first! SMH. I will let you know how it goes.

I know that with Alison, I often had to remind her nurses that she had taken more in a previous feed if she was a little less on that feed. They never really bothered to check before they would feed. Hang in there. Just remember, you want to make sure she is completely ready to come home because you don't want to have to bring her back, ya know? It is so stressful having a little one in the NICU, many hugs to you.

I had the same issues. As terrible as it was, I had to go back to work when Hannah was in the NICU in order to keep my job, which held our insurance. I had a couple of days left on FMLA and took those two days off - a Monday and Tuesday since she was supposed to come home that weekend. That weekend they told me she would probably have to stay another week due to the bradys and reflux, but I cried and the neonatologist let her go home on that Tuesday, and I went back to work on that Wednesday. But, she should have stayed in longer. When we got home she quit breathing and her apnea monitor went off. So while the doctors did what was best for Mom, I now realize they should have done what was best for baby and should have been tougher on me. So....that's my story. Your precious baby will be home soon enough. Congrats on your little miracle!

The nurses used to overfeed my DD formula too and she would throw it all up. She was required to have 2 feeds per day of Neosure mixed to 24 cal. She was fine with a larger amounts of BM, but the Neosure got her sick if they gave her too much. I got so pissed b/c she would stop breathing after she threw up. I finally threw a huge fit and they started giving her less. Do you have a main nurse you can talk with?